Lin Qingping and Gu Juncheng

Chapter 210 Some People

"We haven't gone back yet! How would we take care of you if we went back?" Lin Qingping said with a smile. "We're staying at the county guesthouse."

Liu Fen nodded, and seeing the pickled radish in the old duck soup, her appetite was whetted.

Lin Qingping filled a large bowl with meat and soup, and ate it all up.

Then, the food that was served in the cafeteria was left uneaten.

Liu Fen felt a little embarrassed. How could someone who was used to living a frugal and simple life be so greedy for good food in front of her children?

Liu Fen had been taught since childhood that good food should be given to her husband and son, and she felt a little embarrassed when she saw the leftovers.

"I won't eat at the cafeteria, give it to Gu Juncheng." Lin Qingping smiled and handed the lunchbox to Gu Juncheng. "Eat it if you're hungry tonight."

Gu Juncheng can eat anything with gusto.

There was still half a pot of old duck soup left. Lin Qingping covered it and told Liu Fen to eat it if she was hungry that night. She also emphasized, "Mom, it's hot. If you don't eat it overnight, don't eat it tomorrow, or you'll get a stomachache."

"What about you? Have you eaten?" Liu Fen asked hurriedly.

Lin Qingping said, "We've already eaten, so you can keep it." The food was bought from a restaurant, and the three of them ate half of the old duck, leaving the other half for Liu Fen.

After sitting with Liu Fen for a while, the family of three returned to the guesthouse.

The son of the woman in the next bed brought her food—a bowl of minced meat and vegetable soup. A few bits of minced meat were stuck to the vegetable leaves, and the vegetables were overcooked and yellow. However, the aroma of old duck soup still lingered in the air. The woman's face fell, and she put down her chopsticks. "I have no appetite. I don't want to eat."

Upon hearing this, Liu Fen said, "The old duck soup my daughter-in-law bought is really appetizing. I didn't have much of an appetite, but once I started eating, I couldn't stop. I can't finish the rest, so if you don't mind, you can eat it. It's all clean."

These words were exactly what the older woman wanted to hear. After hesitating for a while, she finished off the rest of the duck meat and soup.

After finishing the meal, I thought to myself, "This is truly a good day."

So she became even more annoyed with her own family's minced meat soup and felt increasingly resentful. They were both peasant women, so why did she get to have such good food?

He pursed his lips and said to Liu Fen, "Your wife really doesn't value money!"

Liu Fen smiled somewhat reluctantly, "They're doing alright."

Liu Fen knew that Lin Qingping had made some money selling clothes. Lin Qingping had even left a booklet with her back then, but she didn't know what happened after that.

The older woman then began to ramble on and on.

"Even if life is good, this is not how you spend money! This used to be the style of a bourgeois young lady!"

"She's actually staying at a guesthouse in the county! How much does that cost? We don't have a wife like that in our village!"

"How will we cook and take care of ourselves if we live in the county? We'll have to eat out every meal, which will cost too much money!"

"And another thing, he ate before bringing you your food! He has no manners at all."

"If you give the food that you don't want to eat to your son, then at home you give all the good food to your daughter-in-law and the rest to the men? That's outrageous."

“I think Xiaxia is better. She goes to and from the village every day, braving wind and rain to take care of you. That’s how she treats you. She’s also frugal and simple. That’s what a good daughter-in-law should be.”

Liu Fen had been enjoying a delicious duck soup, but the old woman's ramblings ruined it, leaving her feeling nauseous and her face looking rather pale. She even began to think the old woman was right; Lin Qingping really didn't know how to manage her finances. That house in the capital, so beautiful and luxurious…

Unbeknownst to Liu Fen and the woman next door, Lin Qingping, Gu Juncheng, and Zhiyuan were standing against the wall outside the ward, having heard everything clearly.

They realized they had forgotten to ask Liu Fen what she wanted to eat the next day, so they deliberately turned back to ask again, only to hear such a wonderful story.

Gu Juncheng's face was very tense, and he was about to step inside.

Lin Qingping held him down, gave him a sweet smile, which meant: I'm going!

There are some people in this world who are rotten themselves but can't stand seeing others do well. When others are doing well, they have to be troublemakers and ruin them too, but doing so does them no good at all.

This is a classic example of harming others without benefiting oneself.

Lin Qingping entered by stepping on the last few words left by the old lady next door—"good daughter-in-law"—and when she appeared in front of Liu Fen's hospital bed, both Liu Fen and the old lady were startled.

Lin Qingping pretended not to know anything and smiled as she said to Liu Fen, "Mother, I forgot to ask, what do you want to eat tomorrow?"

Liu Fen had just overheard people gossiping about her daughter-in-law and was feeling quite guilty. She wondered if Lin Qingping had heard anything. She absentmindedly muttered, "Whatever, it's fine."

Lin Qingping glanced at the next room and said, "Mom, I've thought about taking the leftover duck with me. There's a well in the backyard of the guesthouse, so I can use the well water to keep it fresh and prevent it from spoiling."

As soon as he finished speaking, the old lady next door shrank back.

Liu Fen said sheepishly, "That's all, there's none left. I just gave some to the lady next door. It's hot, and she didn't have much of an appetite. I thought pickled radishes would whet her appetite, so I gave them all to her... She's always been very kind to me..."

"Oh..." Lin Qingping smiled, "It's alright, it's alright, it's good that you ate it, it would be a pity if it spoiled."

After saying that, he looked at the neighbor lady whose face was half red and smiled innocently, "Auntie, what's wrong? Didn't your family bring you food?"

The woman forced a smile, "It's been given...it's been given..."

"What kind of vegetables did you send?" Lin Qingping glanced at the vegetable and meat soup that hadn't been put away yet, the yellowed leaves still covered with a few bits of meat. "Hey, why don't you throw away this bowl of swill? It smells awful here!"

Lin Qingping never discriminates against the poor. She herself started from poverty. Moreover, many people, though not wealthy, are kind and honest, unlike some who are full of scheming and malice! There's no need to respect such people! Character is what matters most!

Upon hearing this, the woman's face turned as red as a pig's liver, and she quickly stopped him, "No, no, no, I won't..."

He was afraid Lin Qingping would throw it away like swill...

Lin Qingping smiled and said, "Oh, so this is dinner your family sent you. Why didn't they cook something better? You need to nourish your body when you're sick, eat more chicken, duck, and fish..."

Seeing the woman's face growing increasingly red, she smiled and said, "Is it that your family doesn't want to make it for you?"

"No! Of course not! I want something light!" the woman said stubbornly.

"Really? But old duck soup isn't bland either, it's very nourishing." Lin Qingping pretended to be clueless.

"Bottle." Even the honest Liu Fen finally realized that Lin Qingping was teasing the old lady, and immediately stopped her.

Lin Qingping turned around and smiled, "Mom, how about I stew some pork tripe for you tomorrow? How about pork tripe and chicken soup?"